David Alianiello has had severe hearing loss all his life, but he didn’t miss a sound at his wedding on Saturday thanks to a cochlear implant that restored his hearing just in time for the milestone.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better day. I could hear the clapping! It was the first time I had ever heard clapping!” Alianiello gushes. “It was fun to be able to experience the different sounds. The music was very nice when I danced with my wife — I could hear the higher beats!”

You'll get the latest updates on this topic in your browser notifications.

The 34-year-old Baltimore teacher, who was born with congenital hearing loss, got a cochlear implant to restore his hearing last week. He received the implant at the University of Maryland Medical Center with his wife Cortney and daughter Skyli at his side.

Courtesy David Alianiello

“My daughter sang ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star’ to see what I could pick up from that! It was very sweet,” Alianiello recalls of the day.

He and Cortney wed at The Liriodendron mansion in Bel Air, Maryland, on Saturday, surrounded by a small group of family and friends. He tells PEOPLE that his favorite sound of the evening was the clinking glasses.

“I’ve never heard that before. When my father-in-law gave a toast, everybody cheered and I could actually hear the clinking!” he says. “That was really cool. Another cool sound was the music playing. I could hear the changes in the music. That was interesting.”

Photos from the ceremony showed Alianiello and Cortney smiling and embracing on their big day, with little Skyli bouncing around. Alianiello says his friends asked about his implant, and he was excited to tell them about all the different sounds he’s now able to experience.

“It’s taking me some time to get used to it. Everything makes noise!” Alianiello tells PEOPLE. “When you move something across your desk it makes noise. I was telling them about how noisy the world is and it really gives new meaning to silence is golden.”

Alianiello says he decided to get a cochlear implant (through Cochlear.com) after hearing from another recipient who revealed how her life had changed for the better.

Courtesy David Alianiello

He tells PEOPLE he’s looking forward to enhancing his love to his family and contributions to students at Villa Cresta Elementary School.

Ahead of the wedding, Alianiello — who is expecting another child with Cortney — told PEOPLE he was excited not only to say “I do,” but to hear his family and friends cheering for the couple.

“I’m excited for the sounds that come with the wedding. The clapping, the cheering, that kind of stuff. I’m excited to see how my brain will process all of that,” he previously told PEOPLE.

Courtesy David Alianiello

“I’m excited! We’re gonna have music playing. It’s gonna be really interesting to see how my brain can process all these different sounds coming in, especially the music when we’re dancing to our first song as a married couple,” he continued.

Now, Alianiello says he’s excited to embark on this “noisy” journey with his family.

“I’m looking forward to growing with my daughter and with the new baby and developing these new sounds and hearing them and identifying them,” he tells PEOPLE. “Training myself to listen to these sounds. I’m looking forward to the first words my new baby speaks.”

You May Like

Read More

Stay in the Know

Subscribe to PEOPLE’s newsletters so you never miss out on a must-read story

Manage Push Notifications

If you have opted in for our browser push notifications, and you would like to
opt-out, please refer to the following instructions depending on your device and
browser. For turning notifications on or off on Google Chrome and Android
click here, for Firefox
click here, for Safari
click here and for Microsoft's Edge
click here.

this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.